Ep 2:1 ”And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, “
We all know and have been deeply discussing how dead we are to sin after being born again. We understand that we would stop being available to sin when the devil’s darts tempt us by deception.
Being dead in sin portrays the fact that we had absolutely no reason to live and were hopeless of being saved from the deep sin we were lost into. The grace of God through Christ Jesus has given us hope to live a sinless, holy life that pleases God.
The important lesson here is to be “alive to God in Christ”. This action fulfills the purpose of our salvation.
Being alive to God directly means to be available for learning and obeying God’s words.
There are a few important items here:
1. Ep 2:5 Made alive together with Christ.
When Christ rose up from the dead, he served the purpose of being God. Being dead and rising up shows that everything that was required to be done in the life was complete. The person who rose up is new. (Remember Mary and others had difficulties recognizing Jesus). This person has no liabilities of his earlier life.
Paul compares our salvation to Jesus’s rising up from the dead because we are expected to be regenerated equally as Christ was. (1 Cor 15:42 - 45).
2. Raised us up together and made us sit together in heavenly places (Ep 2:6)
This is again a proceeding of the making alive event. Also, this is the purpose of us being resurrected. It is important for us to verify if we are being raised up after salvation. Has our righteousness (not any other blessing) has grown up and is this growth in sync with the work of the Holy Spirit. (together with Christ).
3. Exceeding Riches (Ep 2:7)
If we have really grown up in Christ, we are expected to display lots and lots of righteousness that even we do not expect from ourselves. God’s love in abundance does not give us material riches. The changes in us should be unexpected and above all other standards the world sets in us.
4. Brought near (Ep 2:13)
A live person to God is near God. He is ready for every instruction God gives. He eagerly waits for God’s instructions rather than creating excuses for disobedience. He knows that God is watching him.
5. Walking in the newness of life (Rom 6:4)
The newness of life points to the fact that God gives us a new spirit. (Ezekiel 36:26) The new spirit gives us new motives to live. Going forward, the new spirit changes our soul to perfection.
6. Reckon (Rom 6:11)
We should convince ourselves that we are alive to God in Christ Jesus. This is a statement of faith. There are no actual visible facts to help us believe. But it is important for Christians to take the leap of faith that we are completely alive to God. This being made alive is not our action. (Rom 6:23) but it is God’s gift when we believe in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Our primary requirement of believing is that we believe that as Jesus was dead and He rose again gives us complete assurance that we are living now in Jesus. God gives death as a “wage” to sin, but everlasting life is not a “wage” which we deserve or obviously expect. But this is gift of God.
7. Instruments of Righteousness (Rom 6:13)
God wants us to present ourselves and our body’s members as instruments of righteousness. For God to perform righteousness, our body’s members should be useful to him. We have to voluntarily give our whole selves to God.
8. Destroy All Enemies (1 Cor 15:25,26)
One important purpose of Jesus’ rising again is that all enemies should be destroyed and at last death. For Jesus to destroy all the enemies, it is not sufficient for Him to lead a clean life. It is required that we, his chosen generation would overcome the devil and thus give Him victory. When the Lord’s requirement is met, then death will be completely destroyed. We will live forever with him. It is important that in the harvest, Christ was the first fruit and we all together form the harvest.
Most Christians say, that it is impossible for us to be perfect and Christ like. If it is not possible, God will not expect that from us. When Jesus has put “All” things under his feet, he has done that for us so that we would overcome Satan completely.
9. God of the living (Mat 22:31,32)
When Jesus was asked a trick question about resurrection, He clearly says that Abraham, Issac and Jacob are not dead. For our eyes, they seem to be dead but God says that they will rise again and so, God considers them as living people. Similarly, Jesus calls the church of Sardis (Rev 3:1) a dead one. In God’s terms, obedience, being useful to God and partaking in everlasting life only means being alive. Otherwise, we are all dead people. Also God denies being our God.. that is God does not have any relationship with us if we are dead.
Let us all consider and make sure that we are available to God as instruments He uses to perform righteousness. If not, we are still dead. We can be either completely immersed in sin, or lukewarm or alive. We see all kinds of people in the Church.
We all know and have been deeply discussing how dead we are to sin after being born again. We understand that we would stop being available to sin when the devil’s darts tempt us by deception.
Being dead in sin portrays the fact that we had absolutely no reason to live and were hopeless of being saved from the deep sin we were lost into. The grace of God through Christ Jesus has given us hope to live a sinless, holy life that pleases God.
The important lesson here is to be “alive to God in Christ”. This action fulfills the purpose of our salvation.
Being alive to God directly means to be available for learning and obeying God’s words.
There are a few important items here:
1. Ep 2:5 Made alive together with Christ.
When Christ rose up from the dead, he served the purpose of being God. Being dead and rising up shows that everything that was required to be done in the life was complete. The person who rose up is new. (Remember Mary and others had difficulties recognizing Jesus). This person has no liabilities of his earlier life.
Paul compares our salvation to Jesus’s rising up from the dead because we are expected to be regenerated equally as Christ was. (1 Cor 15:42 - 45).
2. Raised us up together and made us sit together in heavenly places (Ep 2:6)
This is again a proceeding of the making alive event. Also, this is the purpose of us being resurrected. It is important for us to verify if we are being raised up after salvation. Has our righteousness (not any other blessing) has grown up and is this growth in sync with the work of the Holy Spirit. (together with Christ).
3. Exceeding Riches (Ep 2:7)
If we have really grown up in Christ, we are expected to display lots and lots of righteousness that even we do not expect from ourselves. God’s love in abundance does not give us material riches. The changes in us should be unexpected and above all other standards the world sets in us.
4. Brought near (Ep 2:13)
A live person to God is near God. He is ready for every instruction God gives. He eagerly waits for God’s instructions rather than creating excuses for disobedience. He knows that God is watching him.
5. Walking in the newness of life (Rom 6:4)
The newness of life points to the fact that God gives us a new spirit. (Ezekiel 36:26) The new spirit gives us new motives to live. Going forward, the new spirit changes our soul to perfection.
6. Reckon (Rom 6:11)
We should convince ourselves that we are alive to God in Christ Jesus. This is a statement of faith. There are no actual visible facts to help us believe. But it is important for Christians to take the leap of faith that we are completely alive to God. This being made alive is not our action. (Rom 6:23) but it is God’s gift when we believe in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Our primary requirement of believing is that we believe that as Jesus was dead and He rose again gives us complete assurance that we are living now in Jesus. God gives death as a “wage” to sin, but everlasting life is not a “wage” which we deserve or obviously expect. But this is gift of God.
7. Instruments of Righteousness (Rom 6:13)
God wants us to present ourselves and our body’s members as instruments of righteousness. For God to perform righteousness, our body’s members should be useful to him. We have to voluntarily give our whole selves to God.
8. Destroy All Enemies (1 Cor 15:25,26)
One important purpose of Jesus’ rising again is that all enemies should be destroyed and at last death. For Jesus to destroy all the enemies, it is not sufficient for Him to lead a clean life. It is required that we, his chosen generation would overcome the devil and thus give Him victory. When the Lord’s requirement is met, then death will be completely destroyed. We will live forever with him. It is important that in the harvest, Christ was the first fruit and we all together form the harvest.
Most Christians say, that it is impossible for us to be perfect and Christ like. If it is not possible, God will not expect that from us. When Jesus has put “All” things under his feet, he has done that for us so that we would overcome Satan completely.
9. God of the living (Mat 22:31,32)
When Jesus was asked a trick question about resurrection, He clearly says that Abraham, Issac and Jacob are not dead. For our eyes, they seem to be dead but God says that they will rise again and so, God considers them as living people. Similarly, Jesus calls the church of Sardis (Rev 3:1) a dead one. In God’s terms, obedience, being useful to God and partaking in everlasting life only means being alive. Otherwise, we are all dead people. Also God denies being our God.. that is God does not have any relationship with us if we are dead.
Let us all consider and make sure that we are available to God as instruments He uses to perform righteousness. If not, we are still dead. We can be either completely immersed in sin, or lukewarm or alive. We see all kinds of people in the Church.
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